CRITICAL CONVERSATIONS isan annual
presidential program showcasing distinguished scholars at the
forefront of their fields and at the vanguard of shaping how we
understand the vital issues, questions and challenges facing our
21st century world.

Celebrating UB’s longstanding history of intellectual
leadership and innovation, this program is a vital forum for
timely, insightful dialogue about key issues shaping the world
around us.

The CRITICAL CONVERSATIONS program spotlights
prominent scholars who are leading the conversation about major
societal questions and challenges with broad-ranging,
cross-disciplinary relevance and impact. From global health
concerns and contemporary cultural debates to technological trends
and socioeconomic challenges, these are the topics that cut across
disciplinary boundaries and geographic borders to shape daily life
for us all.

Held annually in conjunction with the start of the academic
year, each program features a keynote address, free and open to the
public, as well as multiple opportunities for students, faculty,
staff and others to interact with these distinguished visitors.

2014 Program: Featured Events

The 2014 CRITICAL CONVERSATIONS program
featured Dr.
David Relman, the Thomas C. and Joan M. Merigan Professor
in the School of Medicine and professor in the Department of
Microbiology and Immunology at Stanford University, and Chief of
Infectious Diseases at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care
System in Palo Alto, California.

A member of the Institute of Medicine and a fellow of the
American Academy of Microbiology and the American Association for
Advancement of Science, Dr. Relman is one of the world’s most
widely cited scholars of the human microbiome, microbial diversity
and function. Dr. Relman will share his unique insights not only
into how microbial organisms are fundamental to human health and
adaptability, but also into how the study of the microbiome can
enable science to recognize and intervene in disease in ways never
previously imagined.